Caster wheel



Nov, 5, w29. W, M CHE'SNUTT www@ CASTER WHEEL Filed Nov. 2, v19.27'

WM. M. COMUNI/TT l atente'el ov. 5, 1929 mmm MORTQN GHESNU'T, 0E' FRESNO, CALIFORNIA., ASSIGNOR T0 JOHN LOUOIEN ennemi. or Lone nnacn, .i canrronnra il? ORNIA, AND FISK MARK MY, F OAKLAND,

cas'rnn wnnnn Application led November 3, 1927. Serial No. 230,517.

The primary object of this invention is to provide an improved construction for a wheel especially adapted for use on casters designed for use on furniture, trucks, and the like.

ai A further object of the invention is to provide an improved construction for a tread of a caster wheel which is comparatively sott and resilient and consequently practical] noiseless and producing a relatively sma l i@ amount of wear on oors and iloor coverings.

A still further object of the invention isl to provide an improved means for mounting and securely holding a resilient tread on a caster wheel. I

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved construction for the-bearings o a caster wheel.

. further object of this invention is to provide improved means for lubricating and pro- 2@ tecting the bearings of a caster wheel by inclosing them within a water-proof and dirtproof and grease-retaining chamber..

With these and other objects in view, myY

invention consists in the construction, ar- C9, n I i rangement and combination of elements hereinafter set forth, pointed out 1n the claims and indicated by the accompanying drawing in whichhig. i is a side elevation of a caster s@ @quipped with awheel embodying my im' ,f provements.

v Fig. 2 is a vertical section through the wheel on the line 2-2 of Figui.

Fig. 3 is a section through the wheel on the vline 3 3 or Fig. 2. j Fig. i is a detail sectional view of a portion lot a wheel of modied form and embodying plain bearin. v

' 5@ prima@ alsa september ie, 1927, serai aber eenen.

As here fl own, the wheel is mounted for. rotation .betweenuspaced wings 10 and 11 ofv a wheel yoke 12, which has suitable means for In the construction of the wheel, two side plates 14 and 15 are employed which are alike in form and construction, but are oppositely arranged. Each side plate 14 and 15 is of annular shape and is formed at its inner periphery with an outwardly facing ball race 16. The outer marginal portion of each side plate is extended laterally outwardly to form a peripheral flange 17. Each side (plate 14 and 15 is formedwith a plurality` of apertured bosses 18, in this instance :tour in number, and the bosses of-said side plates contact `with each other at the `median line of the wheel and serve as spacing members. Securing members such as rivets 19 are extended through vsaid bosses and hold the two side plates and other members together-when the Wheel is assembled. An axle member 20, in this instance in the form of abolt with a removable nut 21, is carried by the wings and 11 0i the yoke and extends looselyv through the central apertures of the side plates 14 and 15. Concavo-convex ball races 22 and 23 are mounted between the wings 10 and 11 and the respective side plates 14 and 15 and are arrangedwith their convex faces outwardly and in contact with the inner f faces of said wings. rlhe race members 22 and 23 extend inwardly in partially embracing relation to the ball races 16 of the side.

plates and bearing balls 24 and 25 are mounted in series between the race members 22 and v23 and the ball races 16 ofthe respec.

tive side plates. "llhe race members 22 and 23 are formed with central apertures to re- VVceive the axle 2O on which they are .rigidly supported and a spacin sleeve or bushing 26 is mounted on' sald ax e between said race members and serves as a spacer therefor when the nut 21 is drawn u tight on the axle. The marginal portions of t e concave-convex race members 22 and 23 are extended outwardly to form flanges 27 which project toward the langes i the side plates and tend to prevent the entrance of dirt string and other foreign substances to the b all races. The tread of the wheel may be formed in any suitable fashion, but referably is of laminated construction.V or many uses to which crs are put, it is desirable to have ica a comparativel 4soft or flexible tread which will be relative y noiseless in use and will result in a minimum amount of wear' on the floor or on a door covering. To meet this need, I have provided a special form of tread which is composed of a plurality of annular sheets 28 of fabric or fabric impregnated with rubber. The sheets or disks 28 are spaced apart and the spaces betweenthem are filled with a homogeneous substance 29 which may be of rubber or a composition of rubber and fabric. The sheets 28 referably are arranged in a substantially vertical plane at the median line of the wheel, but those at both sides of the median line preferably are or curveoutwardly toward the tread and side walls of the tread portion of the wheel, as clearly shown in Fig. 2. l The wheel tread formed of the disks 28 and intervening substance 29 is vulcanized to form a composite whole. This .tread portion which I have designated generally by the letter A, is of generally annular form and fits upon the rim provided by the flanges 17 of the side plates and is also formed at its inner circumference with an integral extension B, which is arranged between the main portions of the side plates 14 and 15 and is clamped between them. The

bosses 18 of the side plates and the rivets 19 also extend through the extension B and further serve to hold the tread member in place relative to the rim. It is obvious that by this arrangement I have provided a simple and economical means for holding the tread member on the wheel and preventing it from pulling out of the space between the side plates and off of the rimbf the wheel by limiting or preventing the outward stretchofthe rubber, while at the Sametime permittin the compression of the rubber or rubber an fabric between the floorand the rim while under load. The treadl member may be placed in a mold for vulcanizing to the desired degree of toughness and hardness without materially imp'airin its resiliencyand ifdesired," the metal si e plates may be placed within the mold during the vulcanizing operation or they may be assembled to the tread later.

If desired, the bearing balls 24 and 25 may constitute the entire bearing means between the stationary and the rotatable parts of the wheel and may be employed to counteract side strains as well as to carry the weight of the load. At times however, it maybe considered desirable to employ additional bearings for the wheel, especially when the caster is to be used for hea duty. For this purpose I have shown a earing member 30 interposed `between the bushin 26 and the .inner marginal edges of the si e plates 14 and 15. This vconstruction is shown in Fig. 4 and I wish it to be understood that an suitable type of bearings may be employe -without departing from my invention. It is also obvious that various combinations of the bearings may be employed in dii'erent wheels, particularly where different kinds of service are required, but by employing the construction I have shown and described, it is possible to.adapt a line of casters to various qualities of usefulness without any great changes and without carrying a large stock of different parts for the device. This adaptability extends also to the tread, as a large variety of treads composed of various materials for a wide and varied field of service may be employed with the same side plates and other members. This reduces the cost of manufacture and assembly and the cost of the manufactured Vproduct necessary to carry in stock. Particular attention is called to the shape and arrangement of the side plates 14 and 15 and the concave-convex race members 22 and 23, which are readily adaptable to the mounting and use of several kinds and 25 and the other bearings.

A washer 31 of the felt or other suitable material is mounted on a thin metal ring 32 and extended outwardly to contact with the inner surface of the overhanging flanges 17 asthe wheel revolves. This is designed to assist in excluding. water, dirt, and other foreign substances and also to retain grease within the parts so as to facilitate and improve the lubrication and increase the efciency and prolong the service of the wheel. The ring 32 may be held in place by engagement of the securing members 19 or the like' as shown in Fig. 2 and serve to support the washers 31'in the desired position. The latter members preferably are turned outwardly at their outer peripheries so as to overhang the peripheries of the ball race members 22 and 23 respectively.

I claim as my invention:

1. A wheel for casters and the like comprising a pair of spaced side plates each formed with a plurality of inwardly extendlng apertured bosses, a laminated tread member mounted between said side plates, the several units of. said tread member being formed with spaced. registering holes through which said bosses extend, and securing members -rojecting through the bosses and bind- 7 lng t e umts of the tread member together i y and between said side plates.

prising a pair of spaced side plates each heel for casters and the like com- Y' i of said side plates and having a portion extending between said side plates and formed with spaced holes, said side plates being formed with bosses extending within the holes of said tread member, into engagement with each other, and securing means extending through said side plates and bosses for 'securely gripping that portion ofthe tread member extending between said side plates.

4. A wheel for casters and the like comprising a pair of spaced side plates each having an outwardly extending peripheral flange at its outer margin and an outwardlyfacing ball race at its inner margin, a tread member formed of rubber composition mounted on the flanges of said side plates and having a portion extending between said side plates, securing means extending through said side plates and through that portion of the tread member extending between them, concavov convex race members mounted outside of the side plates and having races cooperating with the races thereof, and balls mounted in the respective cooperating ball races.

5. A wheel for casters and the like comprising a pair of spaced side plates each having an outwardly extending peripheral flange at its outer margin'and an outwardly facing ball race at its inner margin, a tread member formed of rubber composition mounted on the flanges of said side plates and having a portion extending between said side plates, securing means extending through said side" plates and through that'portin of the tread member'extendng between them, concave-- convex race members mounted outside ofl the. side plates and having races cooperating with the races thereof, and bearing balls mountedV in the res `ective cooperatin ball races, said v race mem ersy having perip eral flanges extending toward the outwardly extending peripheral ii'anges ofthe side plates.

6.. A device oftheclass described, comprising a pair of: spaced wings, a pair of ball. race membersI mounted between Isaid, wings, a bushing occupying the space between said ball race members, an axle passin through said wings, ball race members, an bushing, and. a wheel including spaced side plates having a Vrim 1portion and alsohaving outwardly facing ba l races, bearing balls mounted 1n the respective ball races and contacting with said ball race members, and a tread member carried by said side plates.

. said wings, ball race members, and bushing,

and a wheel including'spaced side plates havingva rim portion and also having outwardly facing ball races, bearing balls mounted 1n the respective ball races and contactingwith Said ball race members, a tread member carried by said side plates, and a bearing member interposed between said bushing and the side plates of said wheel.

8. A ,caster wheel comprising'an axle, an annular rotatable member thereon,`bearings between said rotatable member and the axle, a pair of concave-convex members on opposite sides of said rotatable member serving to inclose the central space thereof to form a chamber for the bearings, and resilient washers carried by said rotatable member and rojecting toward said concavo-convex mem ers to exclude foreign substances from said chamber and also to retain a lubricant therein.

l/VILLIAM MORTON CHESNUTT.

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